Iethod of and apparatus for placer mining



(No Model.)

E. D. BRONSON.

METHOD 0F AND APPARATUS Pon PLACER MINING.

witnesses UNITED STATES l PATENT Orricno EDXVARD D, BRONSONyOF DENVER, COLORADO.

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR PLACER MINING'.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 553,7 '7 5, dated January 28, 1896. Aptiicaioniiedliprn11,1895. sentire. 545,418. m0150551 To @ZZ whom t may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWARD D. BRoNsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Denver, in the county of Arapahoe and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Placer Mining; and I do hereby declare the following to be af ull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to apparatus for placer mining; and it consist-s essentially in means for disintegrating and softening thc material to be treated by means of a4 jet of water until the said material becomes a semiiiuid mass of mud and water mixed in with detritus and dbris, which is then sucked up by a pump, preferably a centrifugal pump, and is forced from the latter pump into a sluice-boX or line of sluices provided with rifes and set at a sufiicient inclination to allow the mass pumped up to find its way down the said sluices.

The said invention also consists in improved apparatus for using the same water over and over again and in certain other novel fea tures which Will be hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is had to the accompanying drawing, which illustrates the operation of the apparatus.

A' represents the bed of a stream, Which is shown as covered with Water and as provided with an arm A2, from which still water may be supplied to the force-pump O, or with an arm A2, from which Water may be supplied to the force-pump C', and also with a pit Al at one side thereof and in which lies the deposit being mined, which pit is preferably adapted to be fed by the water in the stream A, but which may be wholly supplied with water from the force-pump C or from the force-pump O', should the supply of water be inadequate.

The force-pump O draws water through the hose or pipe c and delivers it through the flexible hose c', which terminates in the nozzle c2 for concentrating the stream of water. By means of this stream of water the silt, detritus, dbris, or other material to be treated is disintegrated and reduced to a semifluid mass of mud or mushy sand and water mixed with gravel or the like solid particles, which can centrifugal pump of the snail type.

be pumped up by means of a strong pump of any suitable construction, but preferably a Such a pump is shown at D, which is driven by means of the pulley E from any suitable source of power. (Not shown.) The induction-pipe DV of this pump is connected by means of the large flexible pipe D2 to the pit A. This iiexible pipe D2 is preferably made of a plurality of detachable sections d, coupled together, as at d'; Each section has attached to the outer end two eyes or rings d2, to which guide-ropes fare attached, by means of which the end of the suction-pipe D2 may be properly placed, so as to suck in the semifiuid mass to be treated to the greatest advantage.V l

The eduction-pipe Dof the pump D opens into the upper end of the line of sluices H. This line of sluices may be made of any desirednumber of sluice-boxes h, which, Where two or more are used, should telescope preferably into each other at their lower ends, as shown. These sluice-boxes are mounted upon a suitable system of piling K, which should preferably be as simple as possible in order that the sluice-boxes may be readily taken down and moved about when desired.

My improved method of placer mining is to disintegrate and drench the deposit by means of the pump C, then to pump up the softened material and Water mixed therewith by means of the pump D, and forcing the same into the line of sluices H the material .finds its way down the said sluices, leaving the metal behind in the riflies.

VVh'ere there is ab undance' of water the pump C would not be used, but where there is aV scarcity of Water the pump O may be done away with, and the pump O' may be used to disintegrate and to drench the mass of material to be treated. Thus suppose A2 to represent a pond or pool of water left, for instance, in the otherwise drybed of the stream, and suppose Al to represent the bed or deposit to be treated. Now by pumping from the pool A3 through the longhose o3 (indicated in dotted lines) and through the nozzle c4 the material in the bed A' can be put in such condition as can be pumped up into the line of sluices H, whence the mass runs downward, and a great deal of the water would return to the pool A3, whence it might be pumped again to the pit or IOO bed A and thus used over and over again. Thus it will be seen that a small pond of Water would be suicient to accomplish a great deal of washing out of the metal or could be used in the treatment of a very large mass of deposit.

It will be seen that the herein-described method and apparatus are eminently adapted for use on the side of lakes or ponds or on level lands where there is no natural fall of the Water. Moreover it will be seen that the material to be treated can be handled in enormously large quantities and at comparatively small cost.

By having the tail end of the line of sluices elevated high enough the tailings from the sluices would take a long` time in rising to a sufficient height to be in the Way, while by the construction of the line of sluices andthe supports for the same the said line may be readily moved when the pile of tailings becomes too large or when the bed or deposit has become exhausted.

IVhile I have shown astill-water pocket A2 to feed the force-pump C, this is by no means necessary, as the said pump could draw immediately from the stream A orfrom the pool A3, if desired. Again any suitable source of huid-pressure, such as ahead of Water, may be substituted for either of the force-pumps C or CC self to any of the precise details of construction of the various part-s herein described, as the various parts of the apparatus are old; but the idea of this means of placer mining and of the combination of parts for carrying Moreover, I do not mean to limit my- Iout the same I claim broadly as my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

l. In an apparatus for use in placer 'mining, the combination with a line of sluices raised above the leveloi` the ground tosuch .a height as to insure the certain delivery of the material thereon, and to provide ample dump for the tailings therefrom on the surface belowT the` line of sluices, of aforceepump and a flexible hose connected thereto for disintegrating and drenching the material to be treated, and a centrifugal pump and iexible connection adapted to convey the disintegrated and drenched material to said line of sluices, substantially as described.

2. In an apparatus for use in placer mining, the combination with a sluice-box or line of sluices, of a force-pump and flexible hose drawing water from near the base of said sluice-box or line of sluices, and delivering it under pressure to the mass of material to be treated, for the purpose of disintegrating and drenching the same, and a centrifugal pump and ilexible connections adapted to convey the disintegrated and drenched material to said -sluice-box or line of sluices, substantially as and for the purposes described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

^ EDWARD D. BRONSON.

Vitnesses:

MAURICE J. SIoUsA, PERCY C. BOWEN. 

